Dear Hope,How many times in your life have you wondered -- what is next? Going back is not an option and whatever you do next will be new. Tomorrow's question is "where do we go from here?" That IS a question we as a faith community have asked more than once! It's a question we face as eras in our lives come to end - from the joy of graduations to the grief of losing a loved one to the loss of a j...  Read More

Dear Hope Friends,First a quick financial update: You might recall our monthly recurring gifts took a hit post-COVID, and didn't cover our monthly bills when we came back. We cut costs while also finding a new church home and preparing for growth. Thankfully, we found a home! We still aren't covering our monthly bills, but the gifts from our "Open the Doors" Campaign have bridged some of those gap...  Read More

Why take time for worship during busy summer weekends!? The best reason tomorrow is that Namoli Brennet will be with us!! She is an incredible musician who spent a season as Hope's worship leader with a new album out called The Poet Tree: https://namolibrennet.com/.This weekend we are shuttling between baseball and weddings and grandparents and swimming ... AND I can't for worship tomorrow morning...  Read More

Dear Hope Friends,Responding to a study that not quite half of all US Americans reported feeling burned out immediately after vacation, we are taking a moment to look into the spiritual resources available to us. Last week we considered the importance of 24 hours of Sabbath in our rhythm of rest and work. Tomorrow we are going to look at additional spiritual resources for finding renewal. We'll co...  Read More

Dear Hope Friends,It was not until I learned that the baseball game was canceled that realized how nice a night at home sounded! Followed by a day at home -- without any particular place to be! Is this what Sabbath feels like -- I might have forgotten.Many of YOU have expressed your appreciation and understanding that after an unexpected season of major fundraising and moving a church -- followed ...  Read More

Dear Hope Friends,Recognizing and respecting that it's that busy time of year known as May-cember, you are welcome to experience the community and spiritual connection that comes from worshipping together at 9:30 and 11:00.Tomorrow is Pentecost. I'll touch on what that is and why it might matter to us.I'd love to see you online or in-person! JennieP.S. If you are newer to Hope, and we have not had...  Read More

Dear Hope Church,For my entire life I have been United Methodist, with an asterisk beside it. I've been proud of the rich history of honoring Scripture and Science, Women in Ministry, Creation Care, Personal Spiritual Growth, and Rich Justice Ministries. However, my entire life, there is has been the one thing ... and so, I joined LGBTQ+ inclusion and resistance movements starting in college waaaa...  Read More

Dear Friends,This week has been as exhausting as anticipated, and it has been different than other General Conferences - in the best way. There is a spirit of joy, collaboration, respect, and belonging! In short you really feel the presence of the Spirit!To catch you up: I am serving as a reserve delegate for the Illinois Great Rivers Conference of the United Methodist Church at the General Confer...  Read More

Dear Hope Friends,It is impossible to talk about Christ and Culture without talking about technology. Specificially tomorrow, we'll look at the smartphone. It has changed the way we live as individuals AND as a culture. Without ascribing values, morals, or opinions: communication and information-gathering has changed. Tomorrow, we'll send that through the filter of Scripture, our traditions, our p...  Read More

It's not difficult to see how religion has been used and abused to cause harm and wars and "my side is right" thinking. We all know that Scripture taken out of context can justify almost anything.So, how can we allow our faith to inform our understanding of culture in a way that is helpful?Over the next few weeks, Hope Church is going to take a stab at this question. We'll lean heavily into our va...  Read More

What a Great Week for HopeAfter celebrating Resurrection last Sunday, we are taking a moment to give thanks to community and to God for Hope's new start in Bloomington-Normal!First of all, I was blown away by the participation in our ribbon cutting on Thursday - thanks for everyone who came! Knowing that 4:30 in the afternoon is still the work day for many people, I was expecting about 35 people. ...  Read More

Tomorrow at 9:30 and 11:00 Hope Church will gather online and in-person for Easter Sunday. Hope Kids will take place during both 9:30 and 11:00, too. Welcome your friends to join us or those curious to check online here or YouTube @BeHopeChurchBloNoour app found at BeHopeChurchor Roku, AppleTV, or GoogleTV!A Story of Our Greatest Failure...And YetYesterday a memory popped up from 11 years ago adve...  Read More